Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Sometimes I am so convinced of the excellence of a certain scene that I spend dozens of shots on it. More often than not, all the photos turn out to be quite dull and end up being deleted or forgotten in hard drive limbo. Some other times I take a single casual shot of a vaguely interesting subject, and the visualization on the computer screen reveals an unsuspected potential and an excellent photo is made.

I admire those photographers who are able to visualize the final photo in all detail before actually pressing the shutter button. My work is more intuitive than rational. I have some idea of the kind of image that may come from a particular framing, perspective and choice of camera settings. But, in post-processing, I often create something quite different from what I originally had in mind. Standing behind the camera is only half of the fun in the photographic process.

The two photos in this post are some of the (few) examples when the outcome actually pretty much coincided with my initial idea. I thought this scenario would yield good photos. And I believe it did.

Craig Damrauer, an American artist, sells this print as part of a project called "New Math":

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Portuguese king Carlos I (1863-1908) was known all over Europe for his research works on Ornithology and Oceanography. He organized 12 nautical expeditions for studying the ocean fauna along the Portuguese coast. Many of the specimens collected were either preserved in formaldehyde in glass vessels or embalmed, for future study and scientific dissemination among the general public.

The Vasco da Gama Aquarium, close to Lisbon, holds a large number of sea animals that belonged to the king's collection. The preservation techniques avoided decomposition, but the creatures now look discoloured and ghostly. The visitors wonder along the exhibition rooms with a mix of fascination and horror.

These photos were taken hand-held with apertures around f/2, using only available artificial light. I must say I quite like the results. If you happen to visit Lisbon, don't forget to take your camera to the Vasco da Gama Aquarium Museum. Other sections of the aquarium include regular displays with live animals. Interesting, but not as entrancing.

Olympus E-P2 + Panasonic Lumix 20/1.7

As a final historic note, I may add that king Carlos I and his older son were shot dead on February 1, 1908, when riding an open carriage in Lisbon. The assassins were two monarchy opposers, possibly connected to Carbonaria - a secret and revolutionary society that existed in Southern Europe in the beginning of the XXth century. They were killed on the spot by the royal guard. The king's second son, Manuel, ruled for two years, until the republican regime was finally implemented in Portugal, on October 5, 1910. That was one hundred years ago.

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I've recently entered the world of EVIL (electronic viewfinder interchangeable lens) mirrorless cameras after purchasing an Olympus PEN E-P2. I use it with Panasonic and old Zeiss lenses (with a converter).

Before I was using a Pentax K10D with Zeiss lenses converted from Contax/Yashica mount to K mount. You can find more information on these converters at www.leitax.com. I have no connection to that site, except for being a satisfied costumer.